BALTIC FLEET OUTRAGE.

Thames Star, Volume XXXXI, Issue 10452, 29 October 1904, Page 4

BALTIC FLEET OUTRAGE.

, - ♦— : ! $Per United Press Association.) j LONDON, Qcfob&r 28. i Admiral Roshdestvensiky, commander of the Baltic fleet, reports as , under:— "The incident was provoked by two torpedoers' which, without lights, advanced to attack the vessel leading the Russian squadron,"When, the search light were used and 1 fire was opened thei presence was discovered of several steam vessels resembling fishers. "We triedi to 1 spare these and' ceased / fire as soon as the torpedoers were j out of sight-" „.•■"■ The admiral continues: "The English press is horrified that our toripedoers! remained without assisting, •but we had not ai single torpedoer •with the squadron, and none were left ;behind|. "What' the fishermen saw must must have been one of the foreign torpedoers which; was not sunk. "It remained near to the trawlers until the morning! to. repair the ' damage and watch, for its consort-' j The admiral further remarks: —■ "The squadron, did not assist, the. fishers because they suspected their j complicity owing, to their obstinate ■ persistence in cutting the line of the Hussion advance.'^leveral failed! to show their lights, and others showed them! vary late, -j Admiral Roshdestivensky, in a second telegram state® as under: — "We met hundreds! of fishers before rw'e -met this particular fleet, and ■ showed them every consideration ex- i eept when in the company of foreign iorpedoeres. - "One which disappeared the other way refrained from giving assistance, fearing! to betray herself to those who were not accomplices. The admiral continues: "In the name; of the fleet I express sincere regret to the unfortunate, victims) of circumstance"Not -warship even mi the time of • profoundl peace could act otherwise." Count Lamsdorff states that the Court of Inquiry will be held! at Vigo if the la.ws of neutrality will permit this to 1 be done- , Admiral ORoshdestvensky'si explana- , tion) is) thei cause of surprise andj irritation! in France- j It is denied that France hasi made an offer for meditation.. | The Britishi Embassy at St- Peters- ; bulr'g states that no. insurmountable coniplioaitions are anticipated in Russian official circles'. Reuters Agency reports that Lord Laosdowne has indicated that his does not share in the pessimism! that exists. It is hoped that Russia will soon make ai -definite and satisfactory statement Another high; official remarked: "I believe we will worry through all right." The English' and American press, ridicule the Russian explanation. 'The' Times! saye that Admiral Roshdesitiveinsky's statements are simply incredible and a. tissue of palpable « untruths, wholly irreconciliable with the factsIf the Russian Government adopts ' such a defence the. sooner the discussion is broken otf the better. The Novoe Vremya ascribes the incident to the moral state of the Russian .sailors who were starting a long voyage accompanied with) all tlfe •! alarms that neutrality could! devise. | The Svet boasts that Russia is not so isolated as 1 is supposed. • LONDON!, October 27. The Times says' the situation is' extremely grave: The national indignation is steadily :but irapidly rising,If Aldmiral Roshdestvensky "made the astounding statement he is; alleged to have made, then Great Britain must demand and insist upon his instant dismissal and exemplary . punishment. The Times- adds that apparently Russia is repeating, the dilatory > tacjtii^a ia.ssoicfia.ted! with, riegard to: the reparation for the sinking of the cruisers by the St Petersburg and ' Smolensk. Telegrams received from St.. Petersbung still go to show that the real difficulty relates to* the British Government's 1 firai insistence on the punishment of the officersl concerned in the outrage. Illustrative of the Russian attitude on this point, in a statement in the S*. Petersburg! (paper- Birshevija Viedomosti to the effect that the occurrence was a! fatal accident to which every fleet is liable-' The report of Admiral Roshdestjvejnsky', idotoman<dinjg( !tihe B'altivc squadron, has readied \^%. petersIbuirg. It is -understood that the admiral states that ivro foreign torpedo boats . -with fishermen, on, board!, approached the fleet, and one of them, disappeared, whale the other remained till morning. • It is stated! in, St- Petersburg that lA'djmiiral Kdshdesjtjvtensky wa|s only ■cOmauiissioned to take the Baltic fleet to' Spanish, waters, as he had ibjelen nippoinitedi. .Mjinisfcer of Marine prior to .his departure, Vice-Admiral Avellane, who was acting! Minister, having! become director of the Red Cross organisation. It appears that! the "admiral" 'A the fisher fleet fired a bomb rocket as a signal- for some netting 1. It is held 1 that this was probably the "cannon" which, frightened the Russians 1. The Spanish, newspapers claim, that they have interviewed Admiral Roshdestvensky on the subject of the ] Dogger Bank attack. The admiral | said the incident was '"inevitable," | and he had acted 1 in accordance wtth his .donscrentcto, in order to-' prevent! ifche destruction of hisi squadron. Before lea.viug Liban ho had maae known his intention to attack any (ship that approached' tho fleet. In commenting upon* the report of ffidmiral RoshdestJvcus'ky, the l'aill Mall Gazette declares that its author must choose between three aUornatives- Either lie ,was drunk, or be is mad 1, or a liar. The opinions of those most qualified to judgei inclines) to the belief that French opinion is entirely aiv'er=e to interference or entanglement In any rupture that may take place between Great Britain and Russia. The settled 1 belief of the greater

part of the French, officials and public alike, is that Russia was the aggressor, and that she must find her '■ own way out of the difficulty she has | created- j The Pall Mall Gazette says that M. ; Clambon, the French Ambassador -in London, may be trusted' to impress upon France the necessity of oonvinc- i ing the Ckar that the British' nation ( is "in deadly earnest. ' The battleships, Imper'ator Alex- '> ander' 11., Kniaz Suvorov, Borodino', and Oriel, and the transport Aimadul, have arrived! in the port of Virgo- : The commandant of the port, warned Admiral Roshdestvenski that he] miust not ship stores. The admiral replied! that his .ships wefle damaged, . and had been obligd to separate from the rest of the squadron. The commandant then promised to communicate the fact to his Government. On five German! colliers going alongside the warships, the commandant requested) the admiral not to violate, Spanish neutrality. He also notified j the colliers that he expected them to . obey his directions. | The admiral then applied for leave for each shipl to take at least 400 tons of coal, with, which to reach Tangier- Three of the colliers—then . sailed for Tangier. To the newspapers Admiral Roslndestvensk has stated his regret that he was unable, to revictual at VirgoHe hoped to be allowed doal enough to reach the calmer waters at Gibraltar, where he would revictual at sea. iLo;rd Rosebery has 1 sent. £100 to the relief fund opened by the Mayor of Skill- Ini his letter he characterises the attack oh the fishermen as an unspeakable outrage.